


Choose me

by RechelBethel



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:47:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23128036
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RechelBethel/pseuds/RechelBethel
Summary: No one had ever given Remus Lupin the opportunity to choose in his whole life. What will happen when he has to make the most important one?
Relationships: Remus Lupin/Narcissa Black Malfoy
Comments: 13
Kudos: 49
Collections: Transfiguration: 2020 Round One





	Choose me

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [DBQ2020Round1](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/DBQ2020Round1) collection. 



> Disclaimer: The characters do not belong to me but are the property of J.K.R. and Warner Bros.  
> No copyright infringement is intended. 
> 
> This story was written for the Death By Quill 2020 competition.  
> The theme for this round of the competition was Transfiguration and my chosen pairing was Remus Lupin/Narcissa Malfoy.
> 
> Many thanks to my beta @shuns for their time and help. She had the misfortune to deal with me but she was amazing doing so! Go check her works ;)

The single light hanging from the wooden beam in the old and forgotten White Wyvern Tavern at the end of Knockturn Alley reflects back and forth on the silver surface of the firewhisky filling his glass. He swirls it once before downing the contents with a gulp.

His vision blurs at the edges, the noise in the room dulls to a buzz in his ears and his movements feel less coordinated so he slams the empty glass on the counter. A harsh breath escapes as the liquor burns his throat and slips into his stomach warming him. Tonight the floating feeling is more than welcome, tonight he wants to get extraordinarily and thoroughly pissed then he can’t feel sorry for himself. Not even a little bit.

He picks up his glass, its bottom leaves a wet ring on the cover picture of Witch Weekly around Narcissa Black’s face. Her formal smile doesn't quite reach her eyes, she stands beside Lucius Malfoy who grabs her hand to display the large diamond ring in a never-ending loop.

Once, she was his whole world. Now, she will be the next Lady Malfoy. From stables to stars, as they say.

He nods to the bartender and raises his glass with a bit more effort than necessary. With a swish and flick of the old man’s wand, his glass refills bringing him that much closer to oblivion.

He closes his eyes ready to down another shot, but his first swallow isn’t accompanied by the liquid burn of spicy honey and fermented malt, instead, peat and potting soil coat his mouth.

He spits and coughs glaring down at the transfigured flower pot that once was his glass, still shining with magic. Before he can turn to find the perpetrator a hard slap on his back nearly knocks him from his chair.

“Bloody hell Moony! I didn’t think you were already this far!”

Of course, only Sirius Black would transfigure his firewhisky into a damn plant!

He wipes away the dirt from his mouth with the back of his sleeve and shakes off the hand now resting on his back, almost falling from the stool in the process if not for Sirius catching his elbows to steady him. "Woah, Moony! Relax, will’ya?"

"Pisssss off” - he grumbles, words coming out in a slur.

The old man returns and, casting a nonverbal Scourgify, cleans the mess. "Cut the boy some slack, Black."

Out of the corner of his eye, he catches a glimpse of the old man silently nodding at the newspaper on the counter and groans as the realization crosses Sirius's face.

"l see. So that's the reason why you decided to accept Dumbledore's suicide mission all of the sudden and leave England in less than..." He makes a show of checking on his watch, frowning briefly in concentration, "Twenty-four hours?!?! Hardly enough time for a goodbye party, but it’ll have to do!"

He rolls his eyes, only Sirius would throw a party in the middle of a war. "I was ‘partyin’ just fine ‘ore you came, thank you v’ry much."

"Remus, this isn’t a party, well maybe a pity party." Sirius snorts, "You are missing the most important ingredient." Suddenly his hand feels lighter as the flower pot reverts to the glass of firewhisky which Sirius knicks and waves it vaguely around the room,"You need guests!" with one long gulp his firewhisky is gone.

Sirius smirks down at him looking quite impressed with himself. Remus decides to call it a night but as he stands, the spinning room changes his mind and he falls back on the stool cursing under his breath at the nauseating motion.

"That damn picture did a number on you, huh?" says Sirius in a calm and collected voice, all the mirth on his face is gone, replaced by a clinical look, the one that can read him like an open book.

Remus closes his eyes as the memory overwhelms him.

_Warm fingers trace lazy patterns on his naked chest, silver eyes stare back at him in wonder and red lips, bee-stung plump, curl upward smiling at him._

_“I think l love you.”_

_“Do you now?” He earns a playful slap on his chest in response and laughs because her admission catches him off guard and he is still recovering from his last mind-blowing orgasm when she sucked him to completion._

_“I do.” She shakes her head for emphasis, hair rippling in silken waves._

_He slowly swallows, his throat suddenly feels dry and his cheeks are already warming up, “Maybe it’s just your white knight complex.”_

_His mind spins, who, in their right mind, would love a monster like him? A werewolf._

_The mere concept is absurd._

_Absolutely impossible._

_"Well, you were the one to save me first, remember?” She shudders at the memory of Greyback’s thwarted attack when Remus stood between her and the mad wolf. "I kept you alive just to return the favor, you see."_

_He searches her eyes to try to find anything to clue him in the joke. Weren't they just two people who met under extreme circumstances and found comfort in each other's company - preferably horizontally if he has any say in the matter - and nothing more?_

_As much as he tries to persuade himself, the thought seems wrong._

_They were more than that._

_When had that happened?_

_She takes his hesitation as rejection and starts to pull away. He moves faster, threading his fingers through her hair, with a fluid movement she is under him as he claims her lips._

_She doesn't respond at first, still surprised by his aggression, he is always careful with her. His kisses grew urgent, sucking and licking at her lips to coax her mouth open, swallowing her gasps when she parts her lips allowing him entrance._

_He drags down the sheet to reveal her full breasts filling his hands with flushed flesh and pinching her nipples until they are rosy red. Her legs fall open and he melts into her._

_“You should run away from me." he murmurs against her skin trailing wet kisses from her jaw down her neck making her whimper, pausing only to suck at the secret spot that makes her unravel - if he were to bite her it would be right there._

_She shakes her head in response and slides her hands up his arms to his shoulders to bring him closer._

_His hand caresses her side, over her hip, down her thigh, slowing down at the back of her knee lifting it to wrap around his waist making room for himself between her thighs. They both moan as he slides his cock back and forth against her core._

_Her black hair with the platinum tips covers the pillow, the moonlight from the waxing moon coming through the window makes her eyes shine, the streaks of her irises that he could drown in almost sparkle, her cheeks are flushed pink and her lips still swollen from their activities are drawn into a childish pout._

_Right here, like this, beneath him, she is the most beautiful thing he has ever seen and the image of her bearing his mark arouse him and the thought of sinking his fangs in her soft flesh doesn't seem as dreadful anymore._

_She was his mate._

_“Fuck.” he breathes in the hollow of her neck at the shocking realization. “You should really run away from me.” his voice breaks because that is the right thing to do, isn’t it? You warn people you care about away from evil. You tell them to stay far away._

_Especially, if you are the evil._

_He pushes up on his hands and rises up to look down at her cradling the side of her face, gently tracing the line of her jaw with his thumb, memorizing the curve that he will never be able to touch again._

_If he only could make her understand._

_"Is your fair maiden complex speaking now? Do I need to save you from the Big Bad Wolf” she teases and he stiffens and looks away, starting to feel his temper rising._

_She doesn't give him time to think about it, gently turning back his face towards her, “You listen to me Remus Lupin. You can try to push me away as much as you want but I will save you from yourself if I must.” her gaze is hot with eyes sparking and the firm voice leaves him no room for doubts, “I. Love. You.”_

He opens his eyes again and ponders, how much should he tell to his longtime friend?

They have never lied to each other and he has no intention of starting now besides the alcohol gives him enough courage to share his fears.

"I almost bit her last time." He doesn't turn, keeping his gaze fixed on the different shaped bottles lining the bar back. The answer hangs heavy between them.

"Well, can't say l am surprised." Says Sirius matter-of-factly.

"Huh?" Remus's eyebrows shoot up in response as he turns to look at him.

"What's that look for? Did you really think it wasn't THAT obvious? You’re doing a runner, Mooney, that is the most idiotic thing to do. You know better than me, if you lose your mate you’ll die from the madness!"

He remains silent, madness as always been his destiny since Fenrir Greyback bit him.  
With or without a mate.

Nobody can change the werewolf curse.

"Well luckily for you, I’m the hero who will save your ass. Again. This would be the twenty-seventh time if you are keeping track." Sirius smirks his let’s-do-something-ill-considered-smirk and reaches into the pocket of his black leather jacket for a tiny vial then offers it to Remus.

"What's that for?" Remus asks, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

"Sober-Up potion, of course!" Sirius rolls his eyes "Come on Moony, drink the potion, I need to tell you something important and you have to be in your right mind to hear it."

Remus exhales a short huff, thanks to his werewolf metabolism the alcohol haze has almost burned off on its own, but tonight he can't find enough strength to argue with Sirius's any longer than necessary. He opens the vial and downs the potion.

Sirius raises a brow "How d’ya feel?"

Remus's head throbs and a killer headache is already thrashing his frontal lobes, but at least his mind is clear of the alcohol fog. "Like shite." He states with a grimace, "Now spill it. What did you need to tell me?"

"Nothing to tell, of course. I only needed you clear-headed to welcome your guest properly!" Sirius makes a sweeping motion towards the bar entrance.

His mind still reeling from the potion crashing through his buzz, he cannot catch the meaning behind Sirius’ words, instead, he follows Sirius's gaze and finds Narcissa Black in fine robes of silver-grey standing at the dirty tavern’s entrance looking lost and concerned as her eyes sweep the space searching the crowd for someone when her gaze lands on him.

She smiles.

He blinks a few times. Was the potion bad? Surely he is hallucinating. When he focuses on the same spot Narcissa hasn't disappeared, on the contrary, she is floating towards him.

His heart starts to race and he is almost shaking as he tries to contain the wolf inside him ready to jump forward and claim what is _his,_ having been denied her too long.

He turns and fixes Sirius with an angry glare, "Is this your doing?"

Sirius doesn't get the time to answer as Narcissa's voice cuts in, "Actually, it was my idea."

"You’re late, Princess."

Narcissa rolls her eyes at Sirius's rude greeting, "A princess is never late, she arrives at exactly the right time, besides I would have been here sooner if someone hadn’t forgotten to tell me where to come! I’ve been up and down Knockturn Alley looking for you two."

"Apologies, Princess, but I had to make sure the mess you created didn't cause some irreparable damage first!" Sirius shoves the newspaper under her nose so she can’t miss the blaring headline.

"Sorry Witches - Malfoy heir bids bachelorhood adieu as Narcissa Black soon will say “I Do!”  
Narcissa reaches for the newspaper which crumples as she reads the article, "They assured me the publication was pulled."

The ring on her finger is missing, a detail that even Sirius thought odd "Ciss, where's that outrageous Malfoy landmass on your finger gone?"

"Oh? That monstrosity?" She flips her hair behind her shoulders."I turned it into a butterfly and let fly away.”

"WHAT?! That _monstrosity_ was worth almost 100.000 Galleons!"

”Yes, it transfigured into a particularly beautiful butterfly, but no ring means no betrothal.”

The surprising turn of events leaves Remus agog, "What is going on here?!"

The full moon is in two days and Narcissa's sweet scent fills his nostrils making it hard to concentrate. At the moment, the wolf inside him is restless and whines pacing back and forth, begging him to just take her already. Tonight, he lacks the willpower to stop himself.

Two sets of silver eyes turn on him, having forgotten he was there. Sirius is the first to recover, "Right. My job is done here." He drains what is left of the firewhisky in one gulp and salutes them, leaving without saying anything but winking in Remus's direction.

Remus's eyes land back on Narcissa, taking her in wholly for the first time since her appearance. She shifts from one foot to the other, chewing on her bottom lip.The instinct to lean in and bite those lips for her grows strong, she is even more beautiful than he remembered.

He rubs his face and tries to collect his wit, "Whatever he told you, it doesn't change anything."

"I’m your mate. It changes everything."

He's not surprised his friend shared the revelation with her, after all he's been sinking into self-loathing for weeks and Sirius has been the main target of his foul mood.

"I don't care."

The hard slap catches him off guard. All customers' eyes turn towards them as the sound echoes around the room.

"How can you say that?!"

She is glaring at him cradling her hand. He has a feeling the crack he heard wasn't from his cheekbones, her blow left only a slight sting.

Remus's temper rises.

He hurt her.

Again.

He towers over her and glowers like the fearsome wolf he is. He hates playing this card but desperate times call for desperate measures, "I will tell you this only once so listen carefully." He pitches his voice an octave lower, "My whole life has been a curse l didn't choose! I don’t willingly choose to break my bones, rip off my skin, and lose myself every damn full moon. I don’t get any say, but you do. I don't give a fuck about destiny! I won't take you down with me."

"And leaving me behind is your solution?" Her voice breaks, her eyes moist with tears but her fists clench.

"You don't understand. It's the only thing I can do." Why can’t she see reason?

"No! You don't understand, Remus! All my life everyone took decisions away from me. How to dress, how to speak, how to walk, what to think, even who to love," she throws away the paper, "I am sick and tired of that! I want to make my choices for once and l don't care if it was destiny or an unforgivable curse that brought you to me!" She takes a step closer and touches his face softly, "I love you and I choose you. Can't you do the same? If you feel one shred of what I feel for you, don't run. Stay here. Choose me."

The weight of her words slowly sinks deep inside him. She is offering him what has been denied all his life and the realization freezes him on the spot, worried the world will crumble under his feet if he moves.

Surprisingly the thought doesn't scare him but fills his heart with hope as the chains around it break.

He cradles her face, slowly leans in, and kisses her gently.

For the first time in his life he's not afraid to embrace happiness,"I choose you." he breathes in the small space between them, too afraid to go any further. "I love you." He kisses her again and it tastes like freedom.

She smiles up at him, stands on her tiptoes and locks her hands around his neck, "You know what happens when the white knight saves his fair maiden, don’t you?"

"What?" He whispers in wonder.

Her bright big smile turns into a mischievous grin full of promises and sin. She leans back, takes his hand and starts to drag him towards the door casting him a glance over her shoulders."Come on, your Black knight needs to claim her furry maiden."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for taking the time to read this story.  
> I hope you enjoyed it as much as l enjoyed writing it😊
> 
> Don't be afraid to leave a comment.
> 
> Please leave a comment 🙏😄
> 
> If you would like for a One-shot, send me a mes here japril.ak@gmail.com. I would be more than happy to take any prompt.


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